Turn of the Tide
by jbduenweg
Summary: With Middle Earth adjoined with South Carolina, and the One Ring in the hands of Martins, the war will be not just for independence, but for the preservation of mankind in both Middle Earth and the Otherworld.
1. Root of the Sins

_Disclaimer: I do not own The Patriot or Lord of the Rings. _

This was from the book version of 'The Patriot', and the script version (or movie version) of LOTR.

* * *

**1. Root of the Sins**

"_I have long feared..." _

A tomahawk was placed atop a neatly folded scarlet coat, nestled inside a wooden trunk.

"_...that my sins would return to visit me..."_

A little leather sack was placed next to the tomahawk, a delicate silver chain spilled partially out of the opening of the sack onto the scarlet material, but whatever it was connected to stayed securely within the sack.

"_...and the cost is more than I can bear..."_

The lid of the trunk was securely closed.

* * *

"_The world is changed:_

I amar presten aen:

_I feel it in the water, _

han mathon ne nen,

_I feel it in the earth,_

han mathon ne chae ... a han noston ned

wilith.

_I smell it in the air ... _

_Much that once was _

_is lost, _

_for none now live _

_who remember it."_

* * *

Against the flickering firelight, in the Noldorin Forge in Eregion, molten gold poured out of the lip of an iron ladle.

"_It began with the forging of the Great Rings..."_

Three beautiful rings, each set with a singe glimmering gem, were received with great reverence by the High Elves; Galandriel, Gil-Galad, and Cirdan.

"_Three were given to the Elves; immortal, wisest and fairest of all beings..."_

The seven rings given to the Dwarf Lords were held up together in triumph.

"_Seven to the Dwarf Lords: great miners and craftsmen of the mountain halls..."_

Nine rulers of Men clutched tightly onto their rings, as if they were guarding a precious secret.

"_And Nine ... nine rings were gifted to the race of Men, who above all else desire power. For within these rings was bound the strength and the will to govern each race..._

_..But they were all of them deceived...for another Ring was made."_

Sauron, in his heavy and frightening armor, stood within the Chambers of Sammath Naur, holding out his arm over the fires below him.

"_In the land of Mordor, in the fires of Mount Doom, the Dark Lord Sauron forged in secret a Master Ring to control all others."_

As the fiery lava reflected off of the One Ring, writing emerged on the plain band of gold.

"_...__and into this Ring he poured his cruelty, his malice and his will to dominate all life._

_One Ring to rule them all._

_One by one the Free lands of Middle earth fell to the power of the Ring. But there were some ... who resisted."_

Isildur, the son of the of the King of Gondor, marched his army across the Plains of Dagorlad into battle.

"_A last alliance of Men and Elves marched against the armies of Mordor. On the slopes of Mount Doom, they fought for the freedom of Middle-Earth."_

Lord Elrond shouted his commands to his army of Elven Archers. Arrows flew swiftly through the air. Orcs retreated before the Army of the Last Alliance, as Elendil, who was the king of Gondor, held up his great sword known as the Narsil, killing every orc that came his way.

"_Victory was near!"_

Then...Sauron appeared on the battlefield, towering over all who was there, his very presence was petrifying to his enemies. On his finger was the One Ring.

"_But the power of the Ring could not be undone."_

With one fatal swing of his Black Mace, Sauron wiped out dozens of soldiers of the Last Alliance with one blow, and many more soldiers with several more blows. With desperate courage, Elendil sought to attack this undefeatable enemy, but Sauron struck him down.

Shocked, Isildur dashed over to his father, but Sauron's shadow fell over him...

"_It was in this moment ... when all hope had faded, that Isildur, son of the King, took up his father's sword..."_

Isildur reached for his father's sword, when Sauron stepped upon the blade, crushing it to pieces. He reached down to kill Isildur, but the new King of Gondor swung what was left of the Narsil at Sauron, removing the fingers off his hand – including the finger that wore the One Ring.

Sauron let out a great cry, pulling away from Isildur. He began to implode and vaporize. An explosion radiated throughout the battleground from the defeated Dark Lord as he continued to disintegrate...

"_Sauron, the enemy of the Free Peoples of Middle-Earth, was defeated."_

Sauron's armor fell to the ground, along with his helmet. He was gone. But Isildur noticed something else. He reached over, and picked up the finger of Sauron – the finger that held the ring. It crumbled to flakes, leaving the glistening and glowing ring behind in Isildur's hand. Isildur was transfixed by the ring...

"_The Ring passed to Isildur ... who had this one chance to destroy evil forever..."_

Later, with the ring on a little chain around his neck, Isildur lead his small column of soldiers through the darkening woods in the Gladden Field...

"_But the hearts of Men are easily corrupted. And the Ring of Power has a will of its own..."_

Suddenly – arrows flew from within the woods at them. Orcs leapt out of nowhere, and Isildur was thrown from his horse at the moment of attack.

"_...__It betrayed Isildur to his death..."_

The dead body of Isildur floated along the river in a wake of blood, arrows protruding from his back...the One Ring fell down to the bottom of the river...

"_...And some things that should not have been forgotten ... were lost_. _Thus a Third Age of Middle-Earth_

_began. History became legend ...legend became myth...and for two and a half thousand years, the Ring passed out of all knowledge..."_

A hand reached down to where the ring had fallen, and scooped up the ring along with a fistful of sand.

"_Until, when chance came, it ensnared a new bearer."_

A different hand opened, a hand that was thin and sickly white, revealing the ring – now just a plain band of gold. The voice of the owner of the hand, and the bearer of the ring, spoke in complete awe...

"My Precious..."

"_The Ring came to the creature Gollum, who took it deep into the tunnels of the Misty Mountains, and there it consumed him_."

Gollum squatted beside a body of water, deep inside a dark cave in the Misty Mountains, as he clutched tightly to the ring, muttering to himself in his raspy voice.

"It came to me! My own...my love... My _preciousness_."

"_The Ring gave to Gollum unnatural long life. For five hundred years it poisoned his mind. And in the gloom of Gollum's cave...It waited. Darkness crept back into the forests of the world. Rumor grew of a Shadow in the East ... whispers of a nameless fear. And the Ring of Power perceived ... its time had now come..._

_..It abandoned __Gollum."_

The ring fell down, down, down through the cliffs of the mountains, clanking with each hit...

"_...But something happened then the Ring did not intend..."_

The ring fell from the edge of the cliff, down into a strange patch of clouds far below.

"_The Ring fell from the cliff of the Misty Mountains into an unknown and unseen place that no one has ever ventured before..."_

Out of a canopy of dark mist, the ring fell down...onto the floor of a forest.

"_...the realm of the Otherworld..."_

The hand of a man reached down and picked up the ring, and held it up to his face to examine it more closely. He was mesmerized by the ring, just as Isildur was when he first picked it up. But this man was no King, or any sort of ruler...this man was a simple colonial soldier...

Benjamin Martin.

Just then – the voice of Gollum was heard from the other side of the unknown portal... _"Lost! My Precious is lost!"_

Startled, Ben pocketed the ring in his scarlet coat, and pulled out his tomahawk, listening to the strange voice. He looked up slowly...and saw the peculiar misty canopy dissolving away, along with Gollum's calls echoing from the cave of the Misty Mountains into the area near Fort Wilderness.

Just then, one of Ben's comrades called from behind him in a hushed voice. "Martin! Hurry! We've caught up with them Frenchies!"

With another look around to make sure if he had really heard that voice, Ben quickly turned and hurried in the other direction after his men.

"_...For the time will soon come when the Otherworld will shape the fortunes of all..."_

* * *

**Well, peoples? How do you like it? I know, it probably sounds stupid, but I'm just testing this out to see if will get praised or flamed. I'll post more ASAP! I'm so excited right now, now that I've posted the first chapter to a really cool story!!**


	2. Nathan's Discovery

_Disclaimer: I do not own The Patriot or Lord of the Rings. _

This was from the book version of 'The Patriot', and the script version (or movie version) of LOTR.

In this chapter, I'm doing some 'skipping' of parts that aren't necessary like I did in the first chapter.

**2. Nathan's Discovery**

A lit candle in his hand, Ben Martin headed downstairs from bidding his younger children good-night. He had just seen his oldest daughter, Margaret, show little Susan how to find the North Star. The North Star represented their late mother, and that sort of love distributed among his children filled his heart with joy...and sadness from the remembrance of his wife.

Thomas lay before the blazing fireplace, lining up his pewter soldiers on the hardwood floor. They were once painted scarlet for the British Army, but Thomas decided that dark blue was the best color for them.

Gabriel, the oldest of his siblings, sat low in a comfortable chair, pretending to be reading his book. As Ben passed them, he couldn't help but notice both boys stealing glances at him as he came near the table which bore the mail. Mail does not come often, and when it does – it's an enormous event.

Ben lingered, and waited for the two brothers to eventually cast an annoyed glance at each other, and resume back to what they were previously occupied with.

"So, what was in the mail?" Ben piped up.

Gabriel and Tomas leapt to their feet, and rushed to the table.

* * *

"Psst! Samuel, wake up!" Nathan whispered into his half-asleep brother's ear. "Sam!"

Nathan had waited until his father was downstairs before he went on with a plan he was putting together since that morning. He wanted to see it himself.

"What is it? I'm awake," Samuel whispered back, rubbing his eyes.

"Father's downstairs! Hurry!" Nathan tiptoed to the door, and waited. With a sigh, Samuel kicked off his blankets, and quietly crept over to his brother.

"Now, we need to move fast, all right?" Nathan whispered to his nervous brother. Samuel nodded in reply.

Quickly, they slipped out of their door, and along the hallway, slowly and carefully passing their sisters' door so as to not wake them and get told on. Finally, they reached their father's bedroom.

Holding his breath, Nathan turned the doorknob, pushed the door open just enough so that they can slip the little bodies through to inside the room. Nathan's heart was pounding when he rushed over to the bed, and pulled the blankets up to reveal his father's old army trunk underneath the bed.

* * *

"The New York and Pennsylvania assemblies are debating independence, and a vote is expected by the middle of March," Gabriel read aloud from a paper that came in the mail.

"What about New England?" Ben asked.

"In the town of Chestertown, they burned the Customs House and tarred and feathered two magistrates," Gabriel answered. "They died of their burns."

"Foolish men," Ben muttered in reply.

"Who, the rioters or the magistrates?"

* * *

"Here it is!" Nathan whispered excitedly as he reached under the bed, and pulled out the trunk, causing the sound of the trunk being drug across the floor to be louder than his whisper.

"Nathan!" Samuel whispered. "Father will hear us!"

* * *

Ben glanced up at the ceiling. What was that sound? Was someone in his room?

He thought about going upstairs to make sure – but he shook the thought from his head when he noticed a small note tied with a red ribbon sitting amongst the mail.

"Father..." he heard Gabriel pipe up. "Peter Cuppin joined the Continentals."

Ben froze. He didn't answer his son. He knew was he was implying – and he knew what his answer to that implication was going to be: absolutely not.

"He's seventeen!" Gabriel insisted. "A year younger than I!"

Ben decided not to answer him at all, but he picked up the note tied with the red ribbon.

* * *

There was no lock on the trunk, so Nathan quickly opened it. Inside was the tomahawk, the scarlet coat, and the little sack. The sack was Nathan's interest.

"I saw father last night take this out," he took out the sack, and loosened the drawstrings. Then he upended the sack, and the ring with the silver chain spilled out into Nathan's hand.

Samuel was immediately taken by it. "Can I hold it?"

"No!" Nathan hissed rather aggressively, standing up and clutching the ring to his chest. "I want to try it on first!"

Samuel stood up as Nathan stepped away from him, removing the chain from the ring. Then he slipped the ring onto his finger...and vanished into thin air!

Samuel gasped, his jaw agape with complete shock.

* * *

"The Assembly is being convened in emergency session the day after tomorrow," Ben announced after finishing the letter. "I've been called to-"

"Charles Town?" Thomas interrupted with eagerness. "We're going to Charles Town?"

Ben seemed a little annoyed, but brushed it away as he removed his glasses. "We'll leave in the morning..."

"Nathan!" Samuel's panicked shriek emitted from above their heads. "Nathan, were are you?"

Quickly, the three were on their feet, and running up the stairs. Ben followed his son's calls until he reached his own bedroom, and found Samuel in his night shift, standing beside his open trunk, looking very frightened.

"Samuel...?" Ben stepped forward, and bumped into something that wasn't there – then it was! It was Nathan holding his ring! Ben was about ready to flog him, until he noticed the horror on the boy's face.

"Father..." he whispered. "I think I..."

"Nathan, why did you take this?" Ben knelt down, and gently removed the ring from his hands, which were trembling with the rest of them. "Nathan? Nathan, what's wrong? What happened?"

He looked into his father's eyes.

"I think I just did something horrible..."

At the moment, a deafening sound of an explosion filled the room, the house, and beyond their property lines. Accompanied by the terrific explosion was a flash of blinding white light, causing all in the room to cover their eyes and run for cover.

The ground shook, but the white light was gone. Margret's screams were heard from the next room, but no one could move. With a few seconds, it was all over.

Ben slowly lifted his head from where he was kneeling. He pulled his son out of his arms, and looked at him with a glare in his eyes.

"Nathan, _why did you take it_?"

* * *

**Kinda of a dumb cliffie, but it was needed! Hope you guys liked it!**


	3. Joined Shores

_Disclaimer: I do not own The Patriot or Lord of the Rings. _

**Way too short, I know. Longer one next!**

**3. Joined Shores**

No one soon forgot the incident last night when the Martins left for Charles Town. Earlier, Thomas and Gabriel went outside to search the premises for the source of the strange explosion and light, or what it might have caused.

They found nothing.

The only thing they thought was odd was the thousands of seagulls flying overhead, away from the South Carolina coast.

* * *

Ben crouched down next to his bed and pulled out his trunk. Should he take it with him? He had never worn it on his finger, because that idea had never occurred to him, strangely enough.

He reached down to pick up the sack, but hesitated after a second thought. With his fingers hovering over the sack, his mind debated on whether to leave it behind, or take it with him to Charles Town. It had caused quite a commotion last night – not to mention the tremendous explosion and the flash of light...

Grimacing, Ben snatched up the sack, pulled out the ring by the chain, and stuffed it into his waistcoat pocket. Tossing the empty sack back into the trunk, he shut the lid, pushed it back under the bed, and walked out of the room.

* * *

The Martins' wagon and buggy rolled along the road towards Charles Town, filled with some of their belongings and themselves for their stay at Charlotte Selton's townhouse.

During their day-long trip, Ben asked around in each little town and village they stopped in about the explosion, and no one knew the cause of it – but they were as worried and frightened as they were.

One man explained that he was outdoors when it happened – a ring of light emerged from the coast, and traveled up into the sky. Another old woman said that Charles Town was being shelled by the British warships, but Ben reminded her that the war is not any further south than Boston and New York.

Nathan knew that _he_ was the cause of it. When he put on the ring, he knew what he saw, and knew that by him putting on the ring, the ring caused the explosion. But the result of the explosion was something else altogether.

When they reached the top of the hill, they had the full view of Charles Town...and something else entirely. Ben quickly pulled the reins until the buggy lurched to a halt. Gabriel pulled up his horse beside him.

"So _that's_ what it was!" Ben finally exclaimed.

Before them lay Charles Town, a broad body of water the size of a lake lay as the harbor instead of the ocean, and on the other side of the shrunken harbor was a large mountainous land, with sharp snow-capped mountain peaks, and lush green lands with deep forests throughout.

"That's not supposed to be there," Gabriel shook his head.

"Charles Town must be in an uproar," Ben said. "Let's go and find out how this happened."

* * *

With that, he slapped the reins against the horse's back, and off they went, with their eyes fixed onto the 'new' land before them.

"Aunt Charlotte! Aunt Charlotte!" the children happily shrieked as they ran up the stairs into Charlotte's outstretched arms. She was overjoyed at seeing the children again, and was especially impressed on how well Ben looked after raising seven children on his own.

"They're huge!" she exclaimed softly with her eyes on Ben. "What have you been feeding them?"

"Oh, they're from good stalk," he chuckled in reply. "From their mother's side, of course."

From the friendly compliment, Charlotte was a little saddened by the memory of her dear sister. She managed to look him in the eyes... "Thank you."

Then she turned to the children and announced. "Come and see what I have for you-"

"_Presents_?!" Margaret squealed, her siblings echoing her. "Presents!" Thomas and Gabriel followed their eager brothers and sister into the room quickly forcing their way past their father, pushing him against Charlotte. Their eyes met briefly before they withdrew into a more comfortable distance.

Then Charlotte noticed little Susan in Abagail's arms. Susan was unsmiling to her Aunt, and just gave her an odd look when Charlotte revealed a little doll and handed it to her.

"This was your mother's," she said. When Susan took the doll into her arms, Charlotte looked up at Ben with a look of worry upon her fair face. "She's still not talking?"

Ben only shook his head, which was enough of an answer for her. Then he smiled a little as he patted her shoulder politely. "It does me good to see you," he said.

When they entered the room, he immediately noticed the mass of land before him, the great mountain peaks in complete view from where he stood.

"How did everyone react to this?" he asked Charlotte, nodding his head towards the view. Charlotte sighed as she approached the window, staring at the great mountains and green valleys.

"It was incredible," she explained as Ben walked up beside her. "It just appeared within moments in a blinding flash of light. I thought we were already under attack from the British, but I knew it was too soon..."

"We experienced the whole thing at the farm last night," Ben replied. "No one could have escaped such phenomena like this."

Nathan strained his ears over the chatter of his siblings to hear the snippets of his father's conversation. He tried not to look at them while he listened, but he was certain his father would bring up the ring.

"I..." Ben gulped. Should he mention the ring? Did his son cause this appearance of this land by wearing the ring that he had never worn himself? Is the ring linked to this land?

Just then, he felt like he had a large rock in his pocket instead of the little gold ring. Was it his imagination, or did the ring actually become heavier? It perhaps was just his guilt...he couldn't stop thinking of it. He never allowed the ring to be far from him, even though it spent most of its time in his trunk under his bed.

"Pardon?" Charlotte piped up, noticing how long Ben was pondering his words.

Ben snapped out of his thoughts and turned to her. "Nothing. I don't know how this could have happened, that is what I was trying to say."

"Oh," she nodded, looking back out the window. "I understand."

Nathan let out an unnoticeable sigh of relief. He was glad his father was not blaming him openly about the incident, or the land. It was all the ring, and he was certain of it. He knew what he saw, and knew he must not tell anyone about what he saw when he put on the ring.

* * *

He peered at the odd city before him. It lay on the other side of the body of water, with a harbor, ships, and a great but well-distributed cluster of buildings behind the ships.

The city was alive in the darkness of night, with loud shouts of celebration, and a series of short, small explosions along the streets.

He wondered how this could have happened, and what caused it. He knew the only way to find answers to his questions was to ride down there himself and find answers.

Tightening his grip on his staff and giving his horse a nudge – Gandalf the Grey was off to explore the new and strange land before him, galloping Northward to where he had previously noticed the two lands touching: perfect place for him to just ride across.

* * *

**Please review, too! Gandalf would bring you many fireworks if you do! **


	4. The Otherworld

_Disclaimer: I do not own 'The Patriot' or 'Lord of the Rings'. _

**4. The Otherworld**

Gandalf peered at his odd surroundings as he walked along the crowded main street of Charles Town. He had left his horse by a tree to graze just outside the borders of the city so that he could walk on foot without the hassle of leading his mount around. He found very interesting the pistols the men fired in the air, which caused him to jump with surprise. He had seen many extraordinary things in his long lifetime, but the objects and manner of their celebration drew him in like a moth to a lamplight.

As Gandalf walked through the street nodding politely at the people staring at him with suspicion and curiosity, he couldn't help but notice a stout man standing before him on a platform, giving a fervent speech for all to hear. Gandalf stopped and listened behind two women who were chatting away to each other.

"I am Peter Howard," the stout man on the platform announced. "I've lost most of my hearing and my left leg fighting for the King's Army in the French and Indian War. And how does King George reward me? He cuts off my _other_ leg with his taxes!" Peter pointed to his left leg – which happened to be but a wooden peg.

Gandalf grunted with surprise as Peter continued his speech, but became distracted as a young man approached one of the women in front of him.

"Miss Howard, isn't it?" he said to her.

"You know very well who I am, Gabriel Martin," Miss Howard replied icily without looking at him. "The last time you saw me I was eleven and you put _ink_ in my tea."

Gandalf at first was surprised, then he managed to stifle a chuckle as Gabriel managed to come up with excuses.

"I believe that was one of my younger brothers...perhaps Samuel or Nathan..." he replied, shifting his feet nervously.

Miss Howard looked right at him and retorted: "It was _you_. And it turned my teeth _black_ for a _month_!"

Gandalf raised his bushy white eyebrows at the image of a little girl with black teeth in his mind. _I wonder what all happened after she __**had**__ noticed? _He wondered, swallowing another chuckle.

"I didn't...." Gabriel attempted to reply, but he was certain that he could lose the argument.

Gandalf sighed when the speech ended, and walked away to what looked like an inn. He felt in the mood for a good smoke and something to drink. Hopefully his money would be accepted in the Otherworld.

Once inside and away from the noise outside, Gandalf approached the counter. The room went completely silent as all eyes were upon him. He looked at them, and they began to avert from his piercing gaze. Then he turned to the innkeeper, who was looking at him as if he had two heads.

"W...What can I get for ye, sir?" he asked nervously as he slowly dried his hands with a cloth.

"An ale if you please," Gandalf replied, sliding a few coins across the counter to the innkeeper. The innkeeper picked up the money and inspected it.

"Are you from over there?" he asked Gandalf, nodding his head in the direction of Middle Earth.

"Indeed I am," he answered with pride. "Out of simple curiosity, I decided to drop in for a visit. What surprises me the most is how similar 'here' is to 'over there'." He chuckled as he pulled out his pipe. The innkeeper relaxed. This strange-looking old man is not as frightening at all as he looks! In fact, he sort of reminded him of his own father...

"Thank you, sir," he nodded at Gandalf. "Just let me know if you need anything else."

"Very well," Gandalf said as he picked up his mug of ale, and headed over to a table in the corner. _This place is a direct reminder of the Prancing Pony in Bree! How incredible! _He settled down, removed his hat, lit up his pipe, and began smoking away as he observed the noisy customers of the inn. He there decided to stay a few days here at least, at least before heading back to Middle Earth.

He closed his eyes for a moment in relaxation as the smoke of his pipe filled his lungs for a moment...

"Excuse me, do I mind if I sit here for a moment?" a man's deep voice questioned from above Gandalf's hat brim. He snapped his eyes open and looked up to see a middle-aged man standing over him, wearing one of those odd-looking three-cornered hats that the old wizard concluded was the men's fashion of the Otherworld. The man had a pair of piercing but kindly blue eyes, his clean-shaven face lined with approaching age, his well-tailored suit brown and plain, yet attractive to his frame.

"Of course you may," Gandalf replied at length. "I wouldn't mind the company."

The man quickly pulled back a chair and seated himself, placing his mug of spirits on his end of the table. Gandalf watched as he scooted up to the table in his chair and removed his hat, revealing a full head of chestnut-colored hair that was tied back in a pony-tail with a black ribbon.

"So where are you from?" the man asked after getting settled, which didn't take long according to Gandalf's observations. Gandalf took another draw from his pipe before answering.

"Over there," he said, unable to keep the tone of a chuckle from his voice. "From Middle Earth."

A look of shock appeared on the man's face. "Really? You didn't waste much time coming over did you?" he added with a chuckle of his own, which was more energetic and slightly nervous compared with Gandalf's.

Gandalf simply nodded, keeping the mouthpiece of his pipe between his teeth.

The man nodded in contemplation for a moment before piping up for a moment. "By the way, my name is Benjamin Martin. What's your name, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Gandalf," Gandalf answered, removing his great hat and setting it on the table. "Or more formerly known as Gandalf they Gray."

Benjamin slowly nodded as he kept his eyes on him. "Gandalf..." he repeated thoughtfully. "Interesting name."

"So is yours, Ben-ja-min," Gandalf replied with his usual humor. Benjamin understood his jest, and laughed.

"Just call me Ben," he said.

"Very well," Gandalf nodded, setting his pipe aside. "So...do you live in this town, Ben?"

"No, I live about a full day's ride North of here," Ben answered, leaning back in his chair, getting comfortable. "On a farm, actually, with my children."

"Children? How wonderful!" Gandalf grinned. "How many?"

"Seven," Ben laughed. "My oldest is seventeen, and a handsome lad he is, too. My youngest is two, but she isn't talking, yet."

"How incredible!" Gandalf exclaimed with true enthusiasm.

As the night wore on, Ben and Gandalf sat and chatted about each other's lives – or more about Ben's life, and Gandalf's input about it. To Ben, Gandalf reminded him of the father he had always wanted; someone who was kind, interesting, and good-humored. His own father had been the indifferent and sullen type, which made Ben wonder if his father had even cared about him. This man seemed to care, he seemed to be very interested in him and his life.

Perhaps Ben could prolong his stay...

* * *

**A/N: Sorry it's so short, but I got to get this chapter out of the way before I can move on to the fun stuff!! Enjoy!!**


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